AT LAST! No new news!! [No. 151]

[AFF]

While queuing at the newsagent for my copy of 'Tennis Weekly', I glanced at the back page of the St Albans Observer under the headline "Back on the Ball".

 

...a new look St Albans City squad reports for the start of pre season training tonight with the first friendly less than two weeks away.....a cagey Steve Castle is reluctant to go into too much detail about any possible arrivals at the club until [...you know what's comimg....] pen has been put to paper but a number of new faces are expected [perhaps those new ones will be wearing dark glasses at training tonight]...

 

...this weeks publication of the fixtures has "whetted everybody at the clubs appetite for the 2004/5 campaign" [...clearly, contrary to popular belief, the manager does make the occasional visit to this board...]. Said Steve, "We've had a really good look at them and we are really buzzing about the games coming up."......"There's certainly more than one or two big games to look forward to".....[interestingly, or not, there was no reference to any specific game. Perhaps they don't look at Webbo's fixture list on the web-site.]

 

.....confirmation of the dates of the PSF's....

 

....confirmation that Craig Rydeheard has signed from Bedford on a non contract basis "who will provide competition on the left flank for Graeme Butler, Dave Sargant and Rob Smith". The earliest Steve Castle can see Rob Smith back in training is September or October....

 

....No reference to the signing they reported last week of Craig Rynard, mind....

 

Where do they get this stuff?

[EFM The Firm, The Voice]

So we have 4 players for the left flank now. Sven must wish he was in the City job with a choice like that!

 

Doesn't non-contract mean they can basically go at the drop of a hat?

Anyone get the feeling that young Craig may be shown the door when the compertition of Smith arrives!

On the other hand he may turn out to be brilliant and be off on a free to Fisher by the end of the month!

[YB941 5thD EFM ~soul~]

I hate the revolving door this club has fitted over the last three or four years - basically since the Mudd-era.

 

Long gone are the days when loyal players spent the best part of their career at the club.

 

At one time, you know, we used to have 7 or 8 players all in treble figures in the appearances column!

 

 

[Rob_the_Saint]

Could be another Lenny Piper and be offered a full-time contract and help out with a bit of painting!

[Zagreus]

AFF - over the last couple of weeks you've been buying:

 

Railway Modellers Gazette

Embroidery Monthly

Horse & Hound

Tennis Weekly

 

That's quite a varied interest range you have there! <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> Must cost you a fortune to keep up with it all! Those magazine sure, ain't cheap! At least yer not wasting yer dosh on that "news"-paper!

 

So, how many players do we have now? Roll a dice, times by your age and then divide by 10?

 

Zag

[AFF]

It's early doors, Zagreus, and a game of two halves. The Manager doesn't like to name names until he has allayed their fears and these people have put pen to paper, signed a Pre-contract Agreement and committed their future to the Saints. He will have a number of irons in the fire. Second half, he will take the positives.

 

Confirmed via this web-site [and that should be taken with a pinch of salt. Remember the Rochard Goddard 'signs and commits his future to The Saints' fiasco], we have Steve Castle, Richard Thomas, Miguel De Souza, Rob Smith, Craig Rydeheard and me. That's it for now.

 

Gone is Steve Watts. Rumoured to have gone is/are Derek Brown and Declan Perkins.

 

In competition for places on the left flank are Graeme Butler and Dave Sargant. Oh no! I've just realised. The expression 'the left flank'. He can't be seriously contemplating ever trying that 3-5-2 stuff again, can he?

 

I've heard a rumour, and I never pass on rumours, that Zoricich and Wraight can't make the tour of Eastern Europe but Ben Cogger has filled the breach.

 

 

[Laz]

If that last paragraph is accurate then applying a little maths to the current squad leaves us with just eleven travelling.

[EFM The Firm, The Voice]

I've got some news nah nah nah nah nah

 

It's here

 

Shall I bring my boots to Germany, I have after all appeared in a non-competative game for the saints!

[Laz]

Kettering are busy [****!!****]!

[EFM The Firm, The Voice]

So back in March we had to chance to get two players off the pay roll.

One played one more game for the saints and, as predicted, was off in the Summer

The other will still be here until next summer and will probably not play one more game!

Anyone like to try and work out the cost to the club <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

[Laz]

It was two games: Hayes (remember the ambulance) and Heybridge.

 

Let's say £250 each then thats £500 a week. So I would estimate about £5,000 wasted.

[EFM The Firm, The Voice]

That's 625 paying punters through the gate, which was probably the aggregate attendance after that game for the rest of the season!

[Laz]

That's about right when you discount the freeloaders. I think there were only four further home games: Harrow, Heybridge, Canvey and Purfleet.

[YB941 5thD EFM ~soul~]

Gibson. Well done on another great piece of business.

 

It's just as well you don't know this board exists, or I'd tell you exactly what I think.

 

 

[GHA EFM]

Don't be too pessimistic Zeal. Gibson probably buys a lottery ticket every week. Or something. It's gonna be great next season!

 

<img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />